The bowl that currently sits atop the Stanley Cup is a carefully constructed copy of the original bowl purchased by Lord Stanley in 1893. The original trophy was retired in 1969 because it had become brittle and easily damaged.

It can still be viewed and studied at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

Growth of the Cup

In the early days, players added their names to the trophy by scratching them onto the original bowl with a knife or a nail. From the 1890s to the 1930s, various bands were added to the bottom of the bowl to hold the names of the winning teams and their players. Throughout this time, the appearance of the Cup kept changing almost from year to year. In 1939, the Stanley Cup was given a standardized form as a long, cigar-shaped trophy. It stayed this way until 1948, when it was rebuilt as a two-piece trophy with a wide barrel-shaped base and a removable bowl and collar. The modern one-piece Cup was introduced in 1958.

Women on the Cup

Seven women have had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup: Marguerite Norris (1955) was president of the Detroit Red Wings; Sonia Scurfield (1989) was a co-owner of the Calgary Flames; Marie-Denise DeBartolo York (1991) was president of the Pittsburgh Penguins; Marian Ilitch (1997, 1998) was a co-owner of the Detroit Red Wings; Denise Ilitch (1997, 1998) with the Detroit Red Wings, Lisa Ilitch (1997, 1998) with the Detroit Red Wings and Carole Ilitch Trepeck (1997, 1998) with the Detroit Red Wings.

Playoff Postponements

The assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. forced the postponement of three series games during the quarterfinal rounds of the 1968 Stanley Cup playoffs. Match-ups between the New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers, and Minnesota North Stars and Los Angeles Kings were delayed by a minimum of two days.

Stanley Before Calder

Tony Esposito and Danny Grant both won the Stanley Cup one year and the Calder the next with different teams.

Grant was a member of the 1968 Cup-winning Montreal Canadiens before winning the Calder as the NHL's top rookie in 1969 with Minnesota. Tony Esposito won the Cup with the Canadiens in 1969 and the Calder the following season with the Chicago Blackhawks.

A player remains eligible for the Calder if he has played 25-or-fewer NHL regular-season games.

Conn Smythe Trophy Update

A total of 29 different players have won the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the most valuable player to his team in the playoffs. The trophy was first awarded in 1965. Five players — Bobby Orr, Bernie Parent, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Patrick Roy — have won the award twice.

Four players — Roger Crozier of the 1966 Detroit Red Wings, Glenn Hall of the 1968 St. Louis Blues, Reg Leach of the 1976 Philadelphia Flyers and Ron Hextall of the 1987 Philadelphia Flyers — have won the Conn Smythe Trophy as members of losing teams in the Finals.

Twenty-year-old Patrick Roy of the 1986 Montreal Canadiens was the youngest player ever to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.

The Conn Smythe Trophy is voted upon by the Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) at the conclusion of the final game of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Shutouts

Since the NHL was established in 1917, at least one shutout has been recorded in every playoff year except 1959 (18 games).

Gardiner played seven
seasons for the
Chicago Blackhawks

Crease Captain on the Cup

Charlie Gardiner, captain of the Chicago Blackhawks in 1934, is the only goaltender to have his name appear on the Cup as the captain of a Cup-winning team.

U.S.-Based Teams in the Stanley Cup Championship

The 1916 Portland Rosebuds were the first team based in the United States to participate in a Stanley Cup championship, while the 1917 Seattle Metropolitans were the first to win the Cup.

The Detroit Red Wings have won nine Stanley Cups, more than any other American team, and were the first to win back-to-back titles (1936 and 1937).

Sub-.500 Teams in the Stanley Cup Championship

Fifteen teams have advanced to the Stanley Cup Championship after posting regular-season records below the .500-mark.

The complete list follows:

Year

Team

Record

1991

Minnesota North Stars

27-39-14

1982

Vancouver Canucks

30-33-17

1968

St. Louis Blues

27-31-16

1961

Detroit Red Wings

25-29-16

1959

Toronto Maple Leafs

27-32-11

1958

Boston Bruins

27-28-15

1953

Boston Bruins

28-29-13

1951

Montreal Canadiens

25-30-15

1950

New York Rangers

28-31-11

1949

Toronto Maple Leafs

22-25-13

1944

Chicago Blackhawks

22-23- 5

1942

Detroit Red Wings

19-25- 4

1939

Toronto Maple Leafs

19-20- 9

1938

Chicago Blackhawks

14-25- 9

1937

New York Rangers

19-20- 9

First-Game Winners Hold Decisive Edge

Since the National Hockey League implemented the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Championship format in 1939, the following winning trends have developed:

Teams winning Game #1 have won the Cup 47 of 59 times (80%).

Teams winning both Games #1 and #2 have won the Cup 36 of 39 times (92%).

Teams winning Games #1, #2 and #3 have won the Cup 23 of 24 times (96%).

Teams winning Game #3 after splitting the first two games have won the Cup 17 of 20 times (85%).

Teams holding a 2-1 series lead have won the Cup 30 of 35 times (86%).

Teams winning Game #5 after splitting the first four games have won the Cup 12 of 15 times (80%).

Teams holding a 3-2 series lead have won the Cup 21 of 25 times (84%).

Bower was 44 when he played in the Stanley Cup playoffs

The Oldest Goalie

When Johnny Bower appeared in his last playoff game on April 6, 1969, at the age of 44 years, four months and 38 days, he became the oldest goalie to appear in an NHL playoff game. Lester Patrick at 44 years, three months, and eight days and Jacques Plante at 44 years, two months, and 19 days are more-than-honorable mentions.

Eye in the Sky

For the first time in NHL history, a playoff result was determined by a video replay during the 1992 Division Semifinals between the Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota North Stars.

In overtime Sergei Fedorov's shot appeared to hit the crossbar. After a stop in play, referee Rob Shick consulted the supervisor of officials and video-replay official Wally Harris, who determined that the puck had entered the net, giving the Wings a 1-0 victory.

Back-to-Back Winners

Many players have won consecutive championships in their careers, but few have ever accomplished the feat with two different teams. One player, Eddie Gerard, won the Cup with the 1921 Ottawa Senators, 1922 Toronto St. Pats and again in 1923 with the Senators.

A total of 10 different players have accomplished the feat:

Player

First Champion

Second Champion

Claude Lemieux

1995 New Jersey

1996 Colorado

Al Arbour

1961 Chicago

1962 Toronto

Ted Litzenberger

1961 Chicago

1962 Toronto

Ab McDonald

1960 Montreal

1961 Chicago

Eddie Gerard

1922 Toronto

1923 Ottawa

Lionel Conacher

1934 Chicago

1935 Montreal

Eddie Gerard

1921 Ottawa

1922 Toronto

Harry Holmes

1917 Seattle

1918 Toronto

Bruce Stuart

1908 Montreal

1909 Ottawa

Art Ross

1907 Kenora

1908 Montreal

Jack Marshall

1901 Winnipeg

1902 Montreal

Penalty Shots in the Stanley Cup Championship

A total of seven penalty shots have been awarded to players in Stanley Cup Championship history. None of the seven has been successful:

Date

Shooter

Goalie

June 7, 1994

Pavel Bure (Van)

Mike Richter (NYR)

May 18, 1990

Petr Klima (Edm)

Rejean Lemelin (Bos)

May 30, 1985

Dave Poulin (Phi)

Grant Fuhr (Edm)

May 28, 1985

Ron Sutter (Phi)

Grant Fuhr (Edm)

May 16, 1971

Frank Mahovlich (Mtl)

Tony Esposito (Chi)

April 13, 1944

Virgil Johnson (Chi)

Bill Durnan (Mtl)

April 15, 1937

Alex Shibicky (NYR)

Earl Robertson (Det)

Canadiens Own Mark for Pro Titles

The Montreal Canadiens have won 24 Stanley Cup Championships, more than any other team. The total also equals the greatest number of championships in the history of professional sports. Major League Baseball's New York Yankees have won 24 World Series titles.

Gold Medalist and Stanley Cup Champion

New York Islanders' defenseman Ken Morrow is the only player in hockey history to win both an Olympic Gold Medal and a Stanley Cup in the same year.

After helping the United States Olympic team win the gold medal at the 1980 Winter Games in Lake Placid, Morrow joined the New York Islanders and helped them win the first of their four consecutive Stanley Cup championships.